Double-seaming machine.



No.787,649. 7 PATENTED APR.18,1905. E.ZEH.

DOUBLE SEAMING MACHINE.

APPLIOATION FILED 0019. 1902.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1;

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No. 787,549. PATENTED APR. 18, 1905.v

' I E. ZEH.

. DOUBLE SEAM-ING, MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 9. 1902.

I No. 787,549. I v PATENTED APR. 18, 1905.

v E. 'ZEH.

DOUBLE SE-AMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 001. 9. 1902.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4 Witnesse UNITED STATES Eatented. April 18, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

EDMUND ZEH, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO NIAGARA MACHINE & TOOLWORKS, BUFFALO, N. Y.

DOUBLE-SEAMING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 787,549, dated April18, 1905.

Application filed October 9, 1902. Serial No. 126,461.

To all whom, it Trtay concern:

Be it known that I, EDMUND ZEI-I, a subject of the German Emperor.residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York. haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Double-seaming Machines, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a machine for securing the heads or ends onmetallic cans, boxes, or cases of that kind in which the canbod y isprovided with an outwardly-projecting marginal flange at its end and thehead is provided with a marginal flange which projects outwardly besidethe body-flange when the head-blank is placed on the body, said flangesbeing bent over so that they interlock to form a double seam orlock-joint. The machine is of that type which is provided with a chuckin which the can body and head are firmly held together in the properrelation and dies which are moved toward the can and have faces suitablyshaped to roll or turn over the flanges of the can-body and 'headblankto form the double seam. The double seam when thus formed is more orless open, and while it securely holds the parts from separation it doesnot make a sufficientl y tight joint for many purposes unless the seamis afterward soldered or pressed or squeezed to tightly close the jointor force the interlocking parts into intimate contact.

The object of the invention is to provide an eflicient machine which isof simple and inexpensive construction and in which the double seam isfirst formed and then squeezed, pressed, or tightly closed to finish thesame at successive operations by asingle set of dies.

In the accompanying drawings, consisting of four sheets, Figure 1 is aside elevation, partly in section, of a can-heading machine embodyingthe invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof, the upper head of thechuck being partly broken away. Fig. 3 is a broken sectional elevationin line 3 3, Fig. 1, showing the clutch mechanism. Fig. 4 is a brokenvertical sectional elevation through the lower portion of the machine inline 4 4, Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a-broken horizontal section, partly in plan,through the lower portion of the machine in line 5 5, Fig. 4. .Fig. 6 isa fragmentary sectional elevation through the lower chuck-head and oneof the seaming-dies, showing the parts in the position they occupy whenthe seam has been formed, but before it has been pressed. Fig. 7 is asimilar view, showing the parts in position to press the seam. Fig. 8 isan enlarged fragmentary section of the lower chuck-head andaseaming-die, showing the parts in their initial position. Fig. 9 1s asimilar view showing the position of the parts afterthe seam has beenpressed. Fig. 10 is anenlarged detail section of the clutchbolt, latch,and associated parts;

Like letters of reference refer to like parts in the several figures.

The machine shown in the drawings and herein-after described is designedfor operation upon square cans, boxes, or cases; but it will beunderstood that by suitably changing the cooperating faces of thecan-holding mandrel or chuck-head and seaming-dies the machine can bereadily adapted for operation upon circular cans or cans of othershapes. The combineddouble seam forming and pressing die is also capableof use in joining two pieces of sheet metal whether or not in the formof a can or box.

The can-body (see Figs. 8 and 9) is formed with the usualoutwardly-projecting marginal end flange, and the head or end isprovided with the usual depressed portion which enters I the end of thebody and the marginal flange of which projects outwardly beside theflange of the body.

A represents the main frame or standard of the machine, which may be ofany suitable or preferred construction and which is provided with theusual horizontal table B and extensions or shelves 6 at opposite sidesthereof for supporting the can bodies and heads in a convenient positionfor the operator to reach the same to place them in the can-chuck.

The can-chuck comprises a lower horizontal head or mandrel O and anupper horizontal head O, which is arranged above and opposite to thelower chuck-head or mandrel. The

upper head is of any suitable construction adapted to bear on the upperheaded or unheaded end of the can. The lower head or mandrel is of asuitable diameter and shape to enter the usual depression of thecan-head, so as to form a mandrel to cooperate with the seaming-dies toform and press the double seam. The mandrel is secured to the upper endof a central stud or pin c, which is arranged to move vertically in abearing secured to or formed on and depending from the table B. Theupper chuck-head is secured to the lower end of a vertical stem 0 whichis slidably mounted in bearings 0 provided on an upright bracket 0",rising from the table.

The chuck is operated to grasp and release the can by suitablemechanism. The mechanism shown in the drawings for this purpose isconstructed as follows: D represents av horizontal main or drive shaft,which is journaled in suitable bearings in the lower portion of the mainframe, and (Z a drive pulley or wheel thereof, which is driven by asuitable belt or other means. The drive-shaft is provided withagear-wheel cl, which meshes with and drives a gear-wheel 01 secured toa counter-shaft E, which is journaled in suitable bearings on the lowerportion of the main frame parallel with the drive-shaft. The gear-wheelsare so proportioned that the counter-shaft is turned one revolution toeach two revolutions of the drive-shaft. F represents a circularcam-disk, which is secured to the counter-shaft and provided with ashallow peripheral depression or notch, and f represents a earn-leverwhich is fulcrumed on a pivot-pin projecting from a suitable portion ofthe main frame adjacent to the cam-disk F. One arm of the lever isprovided with a roller which bears on the periphery of the cam-disk F,and the other arm of the lever (see Figs. 1 and 3) is connected to thelower end of a vertical rod f, which is guided in a bearing-opening inthe table and in a bearing 0*. The upper end of the rod f is connectedto the rear end of a two-part lever f which is fulcrumed intermediate ofits ends on the upright bracket and is connected at its front end to thevertical stem of the upper chuckhead. f, Fig. 1, represents a springwhich is coiled about the upright rod f between a suitable pin orshoulder thereon and the table. This spring acts to depress the verticalrod and hold the roller on the cam-lever on the periphery of thecam-disk F. While the roller bears on the circular portion of theperiphery of the cam, the rod is held against the action of its springand the upper chuck-head is pressed toward the lower chuck-head to graspand hold the can. When the depression of the cam-disk arrives oppositeto the roller on the cam-lever, the latter is permitted to swing, andthe spring throws the rod downwardly, raising the upper head of thechuck through the medium of the lever f to release the can. The chuck isopened to release the can at the upper chuck-head is yieldingly pressedagainst the can, thus avoiding the possibility of injuring the latter,and is positively lifted to release the can. Any other suitablemechanism may be employed for operating the chuck to grasp and releasethe can.

G represents the dies for forming and pressing the double seam or joint.The dies are detachably secured in any suitable manner to the inner endsof slide-blocks g, which are arranged to slide radially toward and fromthe mandrel in suitable ways 9, formed or provided on the table B. Inthe construction shown the slide-blocks and dies are arranged diagonallywith relation to the mandrel, and the inner end of each die is notchedor shaped to embrace and operate upon the adjacent corner or meetingportions of the two adjacent sides of the can. When the dies are intheir innermost position, their inner ends completely surround the can.It is to be understood that the shape of the dies and their relativearrangement with respect to the can can be changed to suit cans ofdifferent diameters and shapes. Each die (see Figs. 6 to 9) is providedwith an inclined face 9 which supports the flanges m y of the can bodyand head and is adapted to project beneath the overhanging flange of themandrel or lower chuck-head, and a curved die face or groove g whichwhen the die is moved inwardly engages the outer edges of the projectingflanges of the can body and head and rolls the same over to interlockthe flanges in a wellknown manner, as shown in Fig. 6. This operation ofthe dies interlocks the flanges of the head and can-body'and forms thedouble seam. After the double seam has been thus formed it is pressed orsqueezed to tightly close the same. For this purpose each die isprovided above the curved groove g with a Vertical pressing-face g. Thedies are moved toward the mandrel and can to form the seam or joint bysuitable mechanism. That shown in the drawings for this purpose isconstructed as follows: H represents a slide-head, which is mounted tomove vertical-1y beneath the table of the machine. As shown, the head isguided by vertical rods it, which are secured to and depend from thetable, passing through guideopenings in the slide-head. The slide-headis connected to the upper end of a rod or pitman h, which is provided atits lower end with an eccentric-strap surrounding an eccentric k securedto the drive-shaft D. The connection between the rod or pitman and theeccentricstrap is preferably made adjustable to properly regulate thethrow of the slide-head. h repre sents links which are arranged radiallywith respect to the slide-head. These links are pivoted at their innerends to the slide-head and are pivotally connected at their outer endsto the lower ends of levers if, which are fulcrumed to lugs dependingfrom the table, one lever being arranged beneath each die-block. Theupper end of each lever passes through an opening in the table andengages in a recess in the die-block. At each revolution of thedrive-shaft the slide-head is raised and lowered by the pitman andeccentric and the dielevers are operated through the medium of the linksto move the dies toward and retract them from the mandrel and can. Afterthe dies have been operated, as before stated, to interlock theflangesand have been retracted they are again moved inwardly to causethe vertical faces g to strike the seam and press or tightly close thesame. As the vertical pressing-faces of the dies are on a plane abovethe seam-forming faces, it is necessary to move the dies or the canvertically relative to each other to bring the vertical faces of thedies and the seam on the same plane. Either the can-chuck or the diescould be moved vertically for this purpose. In the construction shown inthe drawings the dies are retained in the same horizontal plane and thechuck and can are moved vertically upward after the seam is formed andbefore it is pressed by mechanism constructed as follows: J, Fig. 4,represents a lever which is arranged beneath the table and is fulcrumedat one end on a pivot j, mounted in suitable lugs depending from thetable. The lever is bifurcated or slotted centrally to straddle thevertical stem of the mandrel and the bearing for said stem. The leverisprovided with a horizontal pin j, which extends laterally throughvertical slots in the bearing and is connected to the mandrel-stem. Theother end of the lever is connected to the upper end of an upright rod jthe lower end of which is pro vided with a roller which travels on theperiphery of a cam K, which is secured to the counter-shaft E. The camis provided with two nearly-semicircular peripheral portions in and it"of difierent diameters, which are connected by short inclined portions.In the rotation of the cam while the roller bears on the smallsemicircular portion In the mandrel remains down in position for thefirst seaming operation. When the forward inclined portion of the camengages the roller,

the rod is raised, and -through the lever J 1 the chuck is movedvertically upward far enough to bring the seam opposite to the verticalpressing-faces of the dies. The mandrel is held in its raisedpositionwhile the larger ward the bolt or slide.

semicircular portion of the cam travels past the roller on the uprightrod 7 and the roller then moves down the rear inclined face. and the rodis lowered, returning the mandrel to its lower position. The chuck isheld in each position long enough for the dies to be moved inwardly toperform their function and returned to their initial outward position.The chuck and the can are permitted to move upwardly by reason of theconstruction before described of the vertical operating-rod f for theupper chuck-head. The upper chuck-head moves up against the tension ofthe spring f which while allowing the chuck to move vertically holds theupper head firmly 0n the can. Y

The drive wheel or pulley (Z is loosely mounted on the drive-shaft andruns continuously. A clutch-and-trip mechanism controlled by a treadleis provided for coupling the drive-shaft to the drive-wheel to start theoperation of the machine after a can body and head have been placed inthe chuck and to uncouple the drive-shaft from the drive-wheeland stopthe machine after the machine has completed one cycle of operations andformed and pressed the double seam. Any ordinary or preferred means maybe employed for this purpose. The clutch-and-trip mechanism shown in thedrawings is constructed as follows:

The drive-shaft has secured thereto adjacent to the drive wheel orpulley a clutch-disk L.

M represents a friction brake ring or strap, which surrounds andfrictionally contacts with the clutch-disk. The brake-ring isstationarily secured to a stud m, projecting from the main frame, and isprovided with an adjusting-screw or other device m for increasing ordecreasing the pressure of the brakering on the disk. The drive pulleyor wheel is provided with a coupling bolt or slide N, which is arrangedin a recess therein and is pressed toward the clutch-disk by a spring ain the recess behind the bolt or slide. The clutch-disk is provided witha notch or recess n, into which the bolt or slide is adapted to bethrown when released by its spring.

0 represents a latch, which is mounted on the drive-pulley and pressedby a spring 0 to- The latch is provided with a shoulder or projectionadapted to engage in a notch in the bolt or slide and hold the sameretracted or away from the clutchdisk against the action of the springn, so that the drive-wheel rotates freely on the drive-shaft. When thelatch is released, the bolt is projected by its spring into the recessin the clutch-disk and the latter and drive shaft are carried aroundwith the drive pulley or wheel.

P represents a trip-lever for operating the latch and bolt or slide.This lever is fulcrumed on a pivot 19, secured to the brakering M, whichsurrounds the clutch-disk. The trip-lever is provided with a shortcurved flange p, which is concentric with the path of the bolt or slideN. This flange is so located and shaped that when the lever is in itsraised position (indicated in Fig. 3) the springlatch on the drive wheelor pulley passes beneath and out of contact with the flange. The leveris normally held raised by a spring 39 connected to the lever and to asuitable stationary part, such as an arm -p projecting from thebrake-ring. The flange is provided at one end with an inclined face 39,which when the lever is depressed engages with a projecting shoulder onthe spring-latch and lowers the same, disengaging its shoulder from theshoulder on the bolt or slide, so that the latter is free to beprojected by its springinto the recess in the clutch-disk. Theclutch-disk and wheel are then coupled together and the clutch-disk andshaft are carried around with the drive-wheel. When the trip-lever isreleased, it is returned to its upper position by its spring, and aninclined face 79 on the flange p is carried into the path of a shoulderor projection'on the slide or bolt N. When the outer end of the boltengages said inclined face on the flange, the bolt is retracted from therecess in its clutch-disk. When the bolt is thus retracted, the shoulderon the spring-latch engages the shoulder on the bolt and retains it inits retracted position until it is again released.

The trip-lever is operated to couple the drive-wheel with theclutch-disk by a treadle Q, which is secured at its rear end to arockshaft 7*, journaled in suitable bearings in the lower portion of theframe and projects forwardly into a position to be conveniently reachedby the foot of the operator. The rockshaft 0 is provided with an arm 1",which is connected to the lower end of a link W, the upper end of whichis connected to the triplever on the opposite side of its fulcrum fromthe spring 19 When the treadle is depressed, the link is raised and thetrip-lever depressed to move its flange downwardly to disengage thelatch from the slide or bolt and release the latter.

S represents a projection or lug secured to the hub of the gear-wheel (Zor to any other suitable part carried by the counter-shaft, and Trepresents an inclined shoulder or face on the adjacent end of thetrip-lever or the link r connected therewith. The location of theprojection S is such that when the coupling bolt or slide is broughtaround to the flange on the trip-lever for the first time after thetreadle has been depressed the trip-lever is depressed by the engagementof the projection S and face T, and the shoulder on the coupling-bolt isnot engaged to retract the bolt by the cam-face p on the flange. Afterthe projection S passes the shoulder T the spring 19 returns thetrip-lever to its normal position, and when the coupling-bolt is againbrought around to the flange the inclined face 22 thereof engages theshoulder on the coupling-bolt and retracts the latter from the recess inthe clutch-disk, uncoupling the shaft from the drive-pulley. The shaftis brought to rest very quickly after the bolt is retracted by thebrake-ring M. The shaft stops with the recess in the clutch-disk in aposition to be again engaged by the bolt or slide when the operatordepresses the foot-treadle at the proper point to properly start theoperation of the machine.

The operation of the machine is as follows: The operator places the canbody and head in the chuck, with the head at the bottom. He thendepresses the treadle which operates the clutch mechanism and couplesthe drive-pulley with the drive-shaft of the machine. The clutch cam Foperates to move the upper clutch-head down to grasp the can, as beforeexplained. The drive-shaft operates the vertical reciprocating head H,which is connected as described to the dies and moves the same inward toform the double seam and then outward again. While the dies are out orseparated the chuck, with the can grasped'therein, is raised verticallyby the described mechanism, and while the chuck and can are held in thisraised position the dies are again moved inwardly toward the can tocause their vertical faces to escape and press or tightly close theseam. The dies are then again separated and the chuck lowered to itsinitial position by the continued rotation of the drive and countershafts. The automatic trip mechanism then releases the main drive-shaftfrom the driving-pulley or element, the chuck is opened to release thecan, and the machine comes to rest with the parts in the correctposition for the operator to remove the can, place another can body andhead in the chuck, and again start the machine by depressing "thetreadle.

If two heads are to be applied to each body, the second head is placedon the body, which is inverted and placed on the mandrel, the seamingoperations being repeated.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination of a support for bolding thework stationary in different positions, a seaming-die provided with aportion for forming the seam and a portion for pressing the seam, astationary guide in which the die is movable toward and from saidsupport, said support in one position holding the seamflanges oppositeto the forming portion of the die, and connected mechanism for changingthe position of said support to hold the partially-formed seam oppositeto the pressing portion of the die and for moving said die toward saidsupport before and after the change of position of said support,substantially as set forth.

2. In a can-heading machine, the combination of a mandrel for holdingthe can stationary at different elevations, seaming-dies each providedwith a portion for forming the seam and a portion on a differentelevation for pressing the seam, stationary guides in which said diesare movable toward and from said man drel, said mandrel in one positionholding the seam-flanges opposite to the forming portions of the dies,and connected mechanism for changing the elevation of the mandrel tohold the partially-formed seam opposite to the pressing portions of saiddies and for moving said dies toward said mandrel before and after thechange of elevation of said mandrel, substantially as set forth.

3. In a can-heading machine, the combination of a mandrel for holdingthe can stationary at different elevations, seaming-dies each having aportion for forming the seam and a portion above said forming portionfor pressing the seam, stationary horizontal ways in which said diesslide toward and from said mandrel, said mandrel in one position holdingthe seam-flanges opposite to the forming portions of the dies, andconnected mechanism which moves said dies to and from the seam, thenelevates the mandrel to position the partiallyformed seam opposite tothe pressing portions of the dies, and then moves the dies to press theseam, substantially as set forth.

4. In a can-heading machine, the combination of a mandrel for supportingthe can, seaming-dies, horizontal ways in which said dies are mounted toslidetoward said mandrel, each die having a curved face for forming theseam and a substantially straight face above said curved face forpressing the seam, means for raising said mandrel to position the seamin operative relation to the pressing portions of said dies, and meansfor moving said-dies toward said mandrel before and after the latter israised, substantially as set forth.

5. In a can-heading machine the combination of a stationary frameprovided with a horizontal table, a vertically-movable mandrel forholding the can stationary at different elevations, stationary radialways on said table, seaming-dies movable in said ways toward and fromthe mandrel and each provided with a portion for forming the seam, and aportion above said forming portion for pressing the seam, sai'd mandrelin one position holding the seam-flanges opposite to the formingportions of the dies, and connected mechmounted to move vertically in abearing, on,

said table, dies movable toward and from said mandrel in radial ways onsaid table, each die being provided with a portion for forming the seamand a portion above the forming portion for pressing the seam, a rotaryshaft, connections between said shaft and said dies for moving the sametoward and from said mandrel, a rotaryshaft geared to saidfirst-mentioned shaft to make one revolution to each two revolutions ofsaid firstmentioned shaft, a cam carried by said second shaft, and alever connected to said mandrel ,and operated by said cam to raise saidmandrel after one revolution of said first-mentioned shaft,substantially as set forth.

7. In a can-heading'machine, the combination of a chuck comprisingoppositely-arranged heads for holding the can, means including anoperating-rod for moving one of said heads toward the other to grasp thecan, seaming-dies each provided with a portion for forming the seam anda portion for pressing the seam, said chuck in one position holding theseam-flanges opposite to the forming portions of the dies,means formoving one of said chuckheads to hold the partially-formed can-seamopposite to the pressing portions of said seaming-dies, and means formoving said dies toward said chuck before and after the change ofposition of the latter, said operating-rod having a yielding portionwhereby the chuckhead operated thereby is adapted to move with the otherchuck-head without releasing the can, substantially as set forth.

Witness my hand this 30th day of September, 1902.

EDMUND ZEH. Witnesses:

JNO. J. BONNER, C. M. BENTLEY.

